Awkward moment man frantically takes off his Australian flag cape and sits on it after stumbling into an ‘Invasion Day’ gathering in Byron Bay
- A man was filmed wearing an Australian flag next to an Invasion Day gathering
- He appeared to hastily remove flag after stumbling across protest on Tuesday
- The man then sat on the flag as he ate his lunch near Main Beach in Byron Bay
A man has rushed to take off an Australian flag displayed across his back after he stumbled across an ‘Invasion Day’ gathering in Byron Bay.
The man was filmed standing in the playground at Apex Park, near Main Beach, on Tuesday, as the nation marked January 26 with both protests and celebrations.
An Instagram story showed the man – who was wearing a black cap, white shirt and board shorts – hastily remove the blue, red and white flag tied around his neck.
The camera then spun to the left, where protesters had gathered around a flag pole which displayed the Aboriginal flag.
A man has rushed to take off an Australian flag displayed across his back (pictured) after he stumbled across an Invasion Day gathering in Byron Bay
‘This kid is brave,’ the Instagram story read.
The man was then snapped sitting on the crunched up flag at a nearby picnic bench as he ate his lunch.
‘Took it off, got embarrassed,’ the additional story said.
He was later filmed walking away from the bench with the flag in his hand.
The stories were reshared by Lords of Byron Bay, an Instagram account dedicated to documenting the famous tourist town in northern New South Wales.
Thousands of people across the country marked Australia Day on Tuesday by attending Invasion Day rallies.
An Instagram story showed the man – who was wearing a black cap, white shirt and board shorts – hastily remove the Australian flag tied around his neck. The camera then spun to the left, where protesters had gathered around a flag pole which displayed the Aboriginal flag (pictured)
The man was then snapped sitting on the crunched up flag at a nearby picnic bench as he ate his lunch
Protesters are calling for the national public holiday to be moved out of respect for Indigenous Australians.
Five people were arrested in Sydney out of a crowd of about 3000 people, who had congregated in small groups in the Domain to protest in a socially distanced and masked fashion.
Conservative lobby group Advance Australia paid for the letters ‘Aus Day’ to be written in the sky above Sydney to counter the Invasion Day rally.
Australia Day in the city began at dawn with the Sydney Opera House sails lit with Indigenous art, with the Aboriginal flag later raised alongside the Australian flag on the Harbour Bridge.
At the protest in Melbourne about 5000 people separated into groups of 100 to abide by coronavirus restrictions.
Thousands of people across the country marked Australia Day on Tuesday by attending Invasion Day rallies. Pictured: Protesters are seen at Flinders Street Station in Melbourne
Scores of people attended rallies in Brisbane, Hobart and Perth, while a huge crowd in Canberra marched from the Aboriginal Tent Embassy to Parliament House to call on Australia Day to be moved.
Nearby, Prime Minister Scott Morrison delivered a keynote address at a flag-raising and citizenship ceremony on the shores of Lake Burley Griffin, attended by the governor-general and other dignitaries.
Mr Morrison argues Australia Day should be on January 26 as it marks the date the nation changed forever.
‘There is no escaping or cancelling that fact, for better or worse,’ he said.
Mr Morrison said January 26, the day Captain Arthur Phillip raised the Union Jack and proclaimed British sovereignty in 1788, marked the beginning of modern Australia.
‘Our stories since that day have been of sorrow and of joy, of loss and redemption, of failure and of success,’ he said.
‘We are now a nation of more than 25 million stories. All important, all unique, and all to be respected.’
Sydneysiders celebrating Australia Day are seen in the national flag at the Rocks on Tuesday
